Taryn immediately raised an ice wall as Altein simultaneously lifted them with a dirt platform. Now, the five guardians stood far above the demon army. Jason dashed off the platform and jumped, sliding down the wall with his sword unsheathed. He was dressed lightly, for the desert heat was sweltering. Jason landed lithely and swung at the first of the demons, swiftly dispatching them. With the grace of a cat, he dodged their clumsy attempts at blows and delivered quick lethal hits in return. His face and clothes and sword were painted bright crimson, coated in the blood of the demons. Demon archers from the back ranks rained arrows at the guardians, but most arrows fell short or hit the ice wall. From above, massive ice spikes rained down to the ground, tearing through flesh and bone as they impaled the ground and everything standing upon it. Naturally, Jason steered clear of that area and Taryn made sure to send them down far ahead of where Jason was fighting. Such coordination had not come to them naturally, but through countless days travelling and training together.
<--<< >>-->
Lirya stood frozen for a moment, a flurry of emotions within her as she watched the others fearlessly fighting the demons with every fibre of their being.
Why am I so useless? She lamented.
They told me I was the most powerful, yet I have yet to awaken any powers! All I got was a circlet as a marker of the fraud I am…
I can’t even protect myself, much less Dargon, She thought.
All of a sudden, a warm feeling flooded her and a gentle voice whispered words she could not comprehend. A pang of longing shot through her and Lirya knew instinctively that those words were related to her missing powers.
What is it saying? She wondered, as the voice repeated the same words over again in a lilting, echoing whisper.
Erv’um naid renai…? The voice repeated, growing louder and more insistent every passing moment.
Erv’um naid renai… um takiyn iie um varni?
Um takiyn iie um varni?
<--<< >>-->
Below, the demon archers had been moving forward and a single arrow fired impaled the ice wall just at the top, chipping off a piece that fell to the feet of Lirya, who stood unmoving and seemingly in a trance, her eyes open but sightless.
Beside her, Taryn was sweating profusely and shaking as he fought to hold up the ice wall. Maintaining the ice in the sweltering desert heat was immensely draining and the overhead barrage of ice spikes had long ceased as he narrowed his focus.
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The demon archer cohort stepped forward and drew back their bows and Jason’s eyes immediately snapped to the ice wall that they were facing and he saw the arrow at the top of the wall, not far from the undefended Lirya. Without hesitation, He turned and dashed towards the wall and jumped as the demon archers fired an arc of arrows that flew up above the ice wall. Using the rough ice and his sword as a handhold, Jason swiftly climbed the wall with superhuman strength. He neared the top in an instant and jumped in front of the flock of arrows, swinging his sword and deflecting some. The rest of the arrows embedded themselves in his flesh with dull thuds and Jason staggered back, toppling off the wall edge and landing heavily on the mud platform near Lirya’s feet. He coughed, finding it difficult to breathe and blood spread from the multiple wounds, drenching the fabric of his clothes.
<--<< >>-->
Lirya snapped out of her trance as she felt a warm solid object fall against her feet.
Erv’um naid renai?
She looked down at her feet and a cold shiver ran down her back and her heart hurt as she beheld Jason’s semi-conscious form gasping for breath with countless arrows embedded in his body and blood pooling beneath him.
“J-Jason…” She whispered, sinking to her knees.
With shaking hands, she touched his face gently, feeling his cold and clammy skin, her tears rolling down her face and dripping onto his face.
“L-Lir… ya,” He choked, drawing a raspy breath and coughing up blood.
He was dying, she knew. There was nothing she could do and that hurt more than anything else.
Er’vum w-want renai?
He raised his hand weakly and she leaned in close to hear his raspy words.
“T-Thank… you. For… m-mourning me…” He whispered, then confessed in a voice so low she didn’t hear it,“But… I-I’m not Jason… I’m not your beloved Jason.”
With those final words, his eyes closed and his hand went limp.
Er-Erv’um naid power?
A faint ringing sound in her ears echoed louder, drowning out the insistent voice. Around her, time felt slow and colour faded from the world. A fiery emotion welled up within her, harsh and cold, yet comforting in a way.
DO YOU WANT POWER?!
Everything came to her in an instant and she knew immediately what words the voice had been waiting for.
“I do!” She cried, with more conviction than ever before.
It was as if she was seeing the world for the first time. Blinding colours flooded her vision and all the noise of the battlefield rushed back in an instant.
A low rumbling sound built up and Lirya started to shake, her eyes glowing bright electric blue and her hair whipping around as the rumbling grew louder.
Huge cracks formed along the hardened desert floor, and the battlefield darkened as thick, dark clouds gathered overhead.
Power surged through Lirya and a dark cloud encircled her. All she could see was darkness. Darkness all around her. She levitated off the ground, surrounded by a whirl storm of darkness, her eyes glowing blue and unseeing. A shockwave emanated from her, crushing buildings and tearing chunks out of Taryn’s ice wall and the demon siege weapons.
Her power flared and the darkness shot up, churning the clouds and darkening the sky further. Beautiful but brutal lightning lanced down from the sky and ripped through the ground, rending flesh and soil alike.